The Tracey Chronicles
by Artemicion
Summary: After hearing his friends talk about him behind his back, Tracey sets out on a journey. Accompanied by his sister and some new friends, Tracey learns some valuable lessons about himself.
1. Reunion

The Tracey Chronicles  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, wish I did, but no.  
  
Author's notes: First off, this is a NON-BASHING TRACEY FIC. I don't know why so many people have a problem with him I happen to love him. So if you don't like Tracey, this fic might not be for you. This takes place a little bit after the events of Pokemon 3: Spell of the Unknown so it might spoil some things for you if you haven't seen it yet.  
  
Chapter 1: Reunion  
  
Tracey Sketchit blinked at the blinding sun as he stepped out of the back door of the research lab of Pallet Town. He glanced around and surveyed all of the Pokemon he would have to spend his morning feeding and studying. Professor Oak had rushed out of town with Mrs. Ketchum for some emergency a few days ago and had left Tracey to take care of everything.  
  
"We'd better get started," Tracey said to his Pokemon.  
  
"Mar-ill!" Marill cried enthusiastically.  
  
"Venon-nat," Venonat screeched.  
  
"Scyther!" Scyther added.  
  
Tracey grinned and pulled out the clipboard telling him what to feed each type of Pokemon.   
  
"First is the Pidgey and Spearow. Seeds, huh? All right. Scyther, you take care of the flying Pokemon," Tracey ordered and motioned to the barrel full of seeds.  
  
"Scyther!" the large insect Pokemon agreed and pushed the wheel barrel towards the flying Pokemon habitat.  
  
"Venonat, you go take care of the bug Pokemon."  
  
"Venonat!"  
  
"Marill, you go and take care of the water Pokemon."  
  
"Marill!"  
  
Tracey grinned proudly as his three Pokemon went off in their different directions to do their assignment. He brushed his dark bangs out of his face and glanced down to see who was next. Stantler and Tauros: special Pokemon feed. He wandered into the storage room to seek out this Pokemon feed that Professor Oak was talking about. Tracey scanned the shelves and spotted a huge box labeled: Pokemon feed for larger animals.  
  
"There it is," Tracey muttered and hoisted it off the shelf. He stumbled a bit because it was heavier than it looked. He paused when he heard the door inside the lab open and slam shut.  
  
"Hello? Is anyone here?" a voice called.  
  
"Hang on a sec!" Tracey yelled, puzzled because the voice sounded so familiar but he couldn't pin point who it was. Tracey placed the box down outside, his mind searching for the owner of the familiar voice. Then it hit him. Was it Janie? The little sister he hadn't seen since he had left on his quest to become a Pokemon watcher?  
  
Excited, Tracey dashed back inside. Standing near the front door was a young girl about ten or eleven years old. She had dark brown hair that was pulled into two ponytails. She was dressed in light blue jeans shorts and a red sleeveless shirt with an orange vest pulled over it. A dark blue backpack was slung over her shoulders and a small yellow Pokemon resembling a Pikachu slightly was propped on her shoulder as she looked around. She hadn't seen him yet.  
  
"Janie?" Tracey asked. She whirled. When he saw her chocolate brown eyes widen, he knew he was right.  
  
"Tracey!" Janie exclaimed and flung herself towards him. Tracey laughed and engulfed his little sister in a welcoming hug. The little Pokemon was startled and hopped onto the ground, looking up at them curiously.  
  
"Janie, what are you doing here? It's so great to see you again!" Tracey said as Janie pulled away.  
  
"I heard that the famous Professor Oak from Pallet had gotten a Pokemon watcher from the Orange Islands for an assistant. I just had to investigate," Janie answered cheerfully. She reached down and scooped up the small yellow Pokemon.  
  
"And who's this?" Tracey asked.  
  
"This is Pichu. Pichu, this is my big brother Tracey," Janie said sweetly to the creature. "Don't be shy. Say hi."  
  
"Pichu," Pichu greeted in a shy squeak.  
  
"Hi Pichu. It's adorable, Janie. When did you catch it?" Tracey asked.  
  
"A few weeks after Pidgey and I left Tangelo Island. Enough about me, what in the world have you been up to? How's Marill and Venonat?"  
  
"See for yourself," Tracey led Janie and Pichu to the back door. He motioned to Marill as it was feeding a Seel, Venonat as it poured food for a group of Caterpie. He pointed to Scyther and smiled. "That's Scyther. He's great. He's my latest catch."  
  
"Neat! What are they doing?" Janie asked.  
  
"It's feeding time. That's what we we're doing before you showed up."  
  
"Oh, really? Did I interrupt you or something?"  
  
"Nah, don't worry about it."  
  
"Tell you what. Why don't we help you?" Janie suggested.  
  
Tracey blinked. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Yeah, of course. We don't mind, do we Pichu?"  
  
"Pi-chu!" Pichu piped up eagerly.  
  
Tracey laughed. Janie reached into her backpack and pulled out a few Pokeballs. "Come out everyone!"  
  
Simultaneous popping sounds rang out and three other Pokemon appeared.  
  
"Delibird!"  
  
"Pidgyouuu!"  
  
"Flareon!"  
  
There was a pink and white penguin, a large tan and brown-colored bird, and a red, four-legged creature with puffy fur Pokemon. They looked at their trainer expectantly.  
  
"Everybody, this is my brother Tracey. We're going to help him feed the Pokemon out there. Understood?" Janie pep-talked them.  
  
"Pi-chu!" Pichu cheered along, punching its stubby little arm in the air. The other Pokemon cried out in agreement.  
  
Tracey found that Janie's Pokemon were extremely well trained and it really made the feeding go by faster. Pidgeot helped Scyther finish spread the seeds in a matter of seconds. Delibird, an ice Pokemon, jumped into the water and helped Marill finish in record time. Janie's fire Pokemon Flareon transported the food from tree to tree for Venonat to feed the bug Pokemon and finished quickly. Tracey, Janie, and Pichu worked together and fed all the other Pokemon.  
  
They finished hours earlier than Tracey and the professor usually did. The two Sketchits and their Pokemon wandered over to the benches and rested for a moment.  
  
"That was great! The professor and I haven't ever gotten done this early," Tracey said with a grin. "How about some lunch?"  
  
The Pokemon cheered, making Janie giggle. "Let's do it. I think we deserve some time to catch up."   
  
Tracey and Janie went to the kitchen and opened the fridge. Janie blinked when she saw the majority of the contents inside. "You guys must love tofu. There's like fifty boxes of it in here."  
  
"Huh? Oh! That's the Professor's," Tracey chuckled. He had a loaf of bread in his hand. "Grab the cheese and ham. I'll make us some sandwiches."  
  
"Okay. I'll make us some lemonade."  
  
When the Sketchits finished making lunch and brought it out, they were attacked by their hungry Pokemon.  
  
"I think they're hungry!" Janie cried laughing. When everyone was situated, Tracey and Janie started catching up. Tracey told her about his friends Ash Ketchum and Misty and their adventures through the Orange Islands.  
  
"Wow, Tracey. Did you really see the titans of fire, ice, and lightening?" Janie asked in awe.  
  
Tracey nodded. "They were incredible! It's too bad I didn't get any sketches for you to see."  
  
They were interrupted by a voice. "Tracey! We're back!"  
  
"Great! Professor Oak's back," Tracey said and grabbed his sister's hand. "Come on Janie. I want you to meet my idol!"   
  
  
Author's Notes: Well, what'd you think? I know it's kind of boring right now, but in the next chapter, more of the story line will pick up. I hope you liked it!  



	2. Discovery

The Tracey Chronicles  
  
  
Author's notes: Thanks for the reviews. It makes me happy that I'm not the only one who is a Tracey fan.  
  
Chapter 2: Discovery  
  
"Tracey! Where are you?" Professor Oak's voice carried out to the back. Tracey, dragging Janie by her arm, hurried out to greet him.  
  
"Jeez, Tracey. Calm down! I'm sure he'll still be out there if we slow down a little," Janie said with a laugh. Their Pokemon looked at them curiously. Pichu scampered after them and tilted its small head at Janie questionably.  
  
Tracey was really excited that his little sister would be meeting his idol. He dragged Janie out into the living room where Professor Oak and Mrs. Ketchum were. Ash, Misty, and Brock were actually with them!  
  
"Hey, Trace!" Ash greeted.  
  
"Pi-kachu!" Pikachu added.  
  
"Wow! Hey guys! What are you doing here?" Tracey asked.  
  
"Ash and his friends decided to stop by and stay for a little while," Mrs. Ketchum responded happily.  
  
"So did everything go okay Tracey?" Professor Oak asked and then saw Janie. "Eh? Who's this?"  
  
"Everyone, meet my sister Janie. She stopped by this morning to visit. She and her Pokemon helped me do the feeding," Tracey said.  
  
"Hi, it's nice to meet all of you. Tracey talks about you a lot," Janie said with a polite smile.  
  
Tracey frowned a little when he saw Brock inspecting his sister closely and mutter softly, "She is cute, but maybe a little too young."  
  
At this point, Pikachu had taken notice of Pichu and jumped off Ash's shoulder. It greeted the smaller Pokemon with a bright smile. Pichu shyly returned the greeting.  
  
"Wow, Tracey. You never told us you had a sister," Misty said, putting Togepi down so it could play with Pichu and Pikachu.  
  
"Oh! Is that a Pichu? Where did it come from?" Professor Oak said excitedly when he spotted Pichu.  
  
"Um, it's my Pichu," Janie replied.  
  
"Aww! What a cutie," Mrs. Ketchum chimed in. Pichu was busy playing a game of tag with Pikachu and Togepi to notice the spotlight it was getting.  
  
"I've never seen one up close. Say, Janie...do you mind if I study Pichu a little?" Professor Oak asked.  
  
"I don't see why not, but I won't be in town for very long," Janie said. Pichu abandoned its game and ran into her arms. "I was actually planning just to stop by and say hi to Tracey."  
  
"May I in the time you're here then? You can always leave tomorrow."  
  
"Okay," Janie motioned to Professor Oak for Pichu. "This is Professor Oak, Pichu. He thinks your interesting. He wants to study you a little bit. Is that okay?"  
  
Tracey smiled at how sweetly and sincerely Janie talked to her Pokemon. The trust radiating off of the little electric type Pokemon's eyes had good reason to do so.  
  
"Samuel? May I join you? I've never seen a Pokemon as cute as this one. I want to play with it," Mrs. Ketchum asked. Janie gently handed her Pichu and the small Pokemon playfully squirmed as it was tickled.  
  
"That sounds kind of cool. Can we stay and watch too?" Ash asked.  
  
"Sure. Why don't we get started then?" Professor Oak said just as Janie's other Pokemon timidly entered the room. "Are these yours too Janie?"  
  
"Yes sir," Janie replied with a smile.  
  
"Goodness, there's so many visitors today!" Professor Oak exclaimed.  
  
They spent hours watching as Professor Oak took pictures and all kinds of notes about Pichu. He made Pichu lie down on a table so that a machine could scan it. It was as if none of the others were there. Professor Oak was fascinated. Mrs. Ketchum had gone off to start dinner.  
  
"Are we even here?" Janie muttered to Tracey with a smirk.  
  
"Not to him," Tracey answered.  
  
"What an interesting little thing!" Professor Oak said finally and gave Pichu a pat before handing it to Janie. "Thank you for this opportunity."  
  
"Your welcome," Janie answered.  
  
Suddenly, Mrs. Ketchum appeared at the door. "I've prepared a huge feast everyone!"  
  
"ALL RIGHT!" Ash cried. "Let's go!"  
  
"Great, it's been a while since I've eaten your cooking Mrs. Ketchum," Tracey said.  
  
"I'm starved. Studying Pokemon really puts a drain on me," Professor Oak added.  
  
"Then what is everyone waiting for?" Mrs. Ketchum asked with a cheery smile.  
  
  
Dinners at the Ketchums were always great. Mrs. Ketchum had made all kinds of tasty food. Tracey had never been so satisfied to be full.  
  
"Oh yeah. Professor, I have some new observations of the Tauros I'd like you to see," Tracey said, remembering the sketches he had drawn a few days ago.  
  
To his surprise, he saw Professor Oak sigh a little. He seemed like he was reluctant to look at the sketches. Tracey glanced at him curiously. "I could show them to you tomorrow..."  
  
"Why don't you go get them? We can all look at them," Professor Oak quickly said.  
  
"I think I'll go see if my Pokemon are hungry. I left them back at the lab to play with Tracey's Pokemon," Janie said, rising as Tracey did. Pichu hopped onto her shoulder.  
  
"Feel free to feed them whatever if they are," Professor Oak graciously offered.  
  
"Thank you," Janie said and the two Sketchits stepped out. Tracey was silent, wondering why the Professor had suddenly been reluctant to look at his drawings. It hadn't been the first time, either. Tracey recalled that Professor Oak had also been reluctant to see his work lately.  
  
"Something wrong, Tracey?" Janie asked as they entered the Pokemon lab.  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"You've been way to quiet, bro. Is something wrong?"  
  
"It's nothing. Listen, I'm going to go grab my sketchbook and I'll see you two back at Ash's house."  
  
"Okay." Janie disappeared into the back.  
  
Tracey raced up the stairs and scooped up his newest notebook. On his way back, Tracey pondered the Professor's strange reaction. A sudden thought struck him, making him stop in his tracks. Could it be that the Professor was getting sick of him?  
  
Is that why he's been acting a bit strange towards me lately? He...doesn't want me around anymore? No, it can't be true! Tracey thought, shaking his head and making his way back towards Ash's house. Pushing the door open, Tracey was about to announce that he was back when he heard his name mentioned.  
  
"So how's Tracey working out as your assistant, Professor Oak?" Brock asked.  
  
"He's a fine boy," Professor Oak said. "He knows a lot and learns very diligently."  
  
"Huh? What's wrong Samuel? You look a little upset," Mrs. Ketchum said next. Tracey held his breath, waiting for Professor Oak to respond. Without realizing it, he gripped the notebook tightly.   
  
"Oh, it's nothing, Delia. It's just..." Professor Oak trailed off.  
  
"What is it Professor Oak?" Ash asked.  
  
"I guess I'm just not used to having an assistant yet. It's been kind of stressful around the lab and with Tracey there, it just seems more crowded. He's a great kid, but sometimes he becomes a real nuisance to me when I'm working," Professor Oak admitted.  
  
Shocked, Tracey's fingers loosened his grip on the notebook and it fell to the ground. Carefully sketched pictures of Pokemon sprawled about uselessly.  
  
"He is a bit eccentric sometimes," Misty put in.  
  
"Yeah, he gets really hyped up when he hears your name," Ash added.  
  
Tracey's fist clenched and then unclenched slowly. His own friends thought the same way about him too?  
  
"And the lab is already cluttered enough. Piles of notebooks don't really help it any," Professor Oak said.  
  
"Have you told any of this to Tracey?" Brock asked.  
  
Tracey didn't want to hear anymore. He could feel tears of hurt beginning to well up in his eyes. How could the Professor think this and never tell him? He was about to turn and leave, but as he did, he found Janie walking up to the house. Pichu was perked up on her shoulder.  
  
"Tracey? What are you doing out on the porch? Why didn't you go in?" Janie asked, blinking. Tracey was suddenly glad that it was getting dark. Janie couldn't see his face.  
  
"Uh...I just wanted to make sure you got back safely. You're pretty new to Pallet so I was afraid you'd get lost," Tracey quickly answered.  
  
"Me? Lost? Come on, Trace! You know I'm good with memorizing directions," Janie said.  
  
Tracey forced a laugh. "Guess I forgot...you know, brother's instincts!"  
  
Janie was quiet. Tracey could tell that she sensed something was wrong. She frowned a little and tilted her head at him. "If you say so. Is something wrong?"  
  
Yeah, sis. My friends think I'm a waste of their time. He thought despairingly but put up a cheerful front. "Wrong? Everything's fine! Come on, they're waiting."  
  
Before she could hold him back or protest, Tracey pushed the door open and plastered a smile onto his face.   
  
"We're back!" Tracey announced before stepping back into the dining room.  
  
"That was fast. So where are the sketches, Tracey?" Professor Oak asked.  
  
Like you really care. "Oh...uh...I couldn't find it. I'll have to go home and dig through my piles of notebooks."  
  
The last part was delivered out of pure sarcasm. This went unnoticed by everyone but Janie who was looking at Tracey curiously. Professor Oak actually looked relieved.  
  
"Very well. I can look them over when you find them," Professor Oak said eagerly.  
  
The rest of the meal was mostly chitchat. Tracey remained quiet the whole time, still hurt by what he had overheard being said about him. Janie kept giving him quick glances. At least someone cared about him. The others were more absorbed to the story Ash was telling about his current journey through the Johto region.  
  
If I'm such a bother to them...maybe I should just go. Tracey thought.  
  
After thanking and saying good bye, Professor Oak, Tracey and Janie headed back to the lab. Professor Oak was in good spirits, whistling merrily to himself. Tracey stayed quiet. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his sister still watching him with a worried expression.  
  
"It really is a shame you're leaving tomorrow, Janie. It was nice meeting you," Professor Oak said when they were all about to go off to go to their rooms for sleep. "I'd like to see you off, but I'm afraid I'll be quite busy tomorrow morning."  
  
"That's alright, Professor Oak. It was a pleasure to meet you. I'll be fine," Janie answered.  
  
"Sleep well. Good night," Professor Oak said and went upstairs.  
  
"He's nice," Janie remarked and then saw Tracey's scowl. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing, I'm just tired. Let's get some sleep. You'll need it tomorrow when you set out again."  
  
"That's a good idea," Janie said with a yawn. Pichu was already fast asleep in her arms.  
  
That night, Tracey rolled out a sleeping bag for her in his room. After mumbling a good night, Janie was asleep.  
  
Tracey, however, couldn't sleep. What the others had said just kept repeating over and over in his head. After an hour or so of tossing and turning with confused thoughts and emotions, Tracey finally came to a solution that seemed only fit.  
  
  
Janie smiled down at Pichu as she packed up her backpack. The little mouse Pokemon was energetic from its sleep and ready for adventure. Perfect for Janie.  
  
After zipping it all up, Janie glanced around, wondering where Tracey was. When she had gotten up, he hadn't been in the room. She was worried about how her usually cheerful older brother had been so quiet and distant last night.  
  
"Pichu, have you seen Tracey?"  
  
"Pi-chu," Pichu shook its small, round head.  
  
"Hmm...He sure is acting weird. Maybe its just part of the Pokemon researcher thing," Janie said with a shrug. "Ready?"  
  
"Pichu!"  
  
"Let me find the Professor and Tracey to say bye first." Janie met Professor Oak outside in the back and said a quick good bye before setting out to find her brother.  
  
"That's weird. Where is he?" Janie said. She walked back into his room to make sure he wasn't there.  
  
"Pi?" Pichu said as it peered into the closet.  
  
"What is it Pichu?" Janie asked and opened the closet door wider. She was surprised to find that all of Tracey's clothes weren't there and his mountains of notebooks had been neatly sorted out and were stacked up in tall piles.  
  
"W-where's all his stuff?" Janie asked, more confused than ever. "Did he just pack up and leave or something?"  
  
She walked back down stairs and stopped in front of the door, staring off into space pensively. What was going on? Why was Tracey acting so strange? He had been fine until yesterday night when she ran into him on the Ketchums' porch.  
  
"Janie?"  
  
The soft voice startled her. Janie whirled, her eyes widening.  
  
"Tracey! There you are. What's going on? I've been looking all over for you. Why is all your stuff gone from your room?" Janie demanded.  
  
"Um...I uh have a question I want to ask you," Tracey answered instead.  
  
Janie blinked. "Huh? Well shoot."  
  
"Can I come with you on your Pokemon journey?"  
  
  
A/N: Sorry if the characters are a little out of character, but I had to make them like that for the story. Please R/R and tell me what you think so far!  
  



	3. A New Journey

The Tracey Chronicles  
  
A/N: I was kind of stuck when I was thinking of ways for Tracey and Janie to start their journey so this may be a little boring. I hope you like it anyway.  
  
Chapter 3: A New Journey  
  
"W-what?" Janie asked, stunned. "Tracey, what's going on?"  
  
Tracey shrugged. "Nothing. I...just want to join you on your journey."  
  
"But what about here? What about being Professor Oak's assistant? You don't want to do it anymore?" Janie pressed. Tracey saw the confusion on his little sister's face. He wanted to tell her his real reason but not just yet...  
  
"I just want a change of scenery for a while. If you don't want me to go, you can just say so..."  
  
"Don't be ridiculous! Of course you can come," Janie said with a smile, but Tracey could still see the suspicion in her eyes. Janie wasn't that easily fooled, Tracey was reminded.  
  
"Cool," Tracey replied and grabbed his backpack from its spot hidden behind the couch.  
  
"Um, aren't you going to tell Professor Oak? I mean, he'll worry, won't he?" Janie asked as Tracey headed out the door.  
  
Ha! That's a laugh! Tracey's mind whispered sarcastically. He muttered, "I wouldn't count on it."  
  
"What was that?"  
  
"Nothing. We should get going. Just where were you planning on heading anyway?" Tracey said, changing the subject.  
  
"Pichu and I were planning to head to Ivory City. I heard they're holding this annual Pokemon Celebration all this week. It's supposed to be a blast," Janie replied.  
  
"Pi-chu! Pi!" Pichu bubbled happily on her shoulder.  
  
"Ivory City? Where is that?" Tracey asked.  
  
"It's not that far from Pallet actually. We might have to cut through Viridian Forest if we want to make it there today," Janie told him, still watching him carefully.  
  
"Janie, don't look at me like that, okay? I'm fine! I'll call Professor Oak whenever we get to Ivory City," Tracey said, trying his best to sound convincing.   
  
Janie still looked unconvinced but she nodded slowly. "Okay. Then let's get going."  
  
The day was beautiful. Tracey loved the feel of the warm sun on his tanned skin. It'd been a while since he'd been traveling around, and it surprised him that he had missed it.  
  
"Hey!" a voice called suddenly from their right.  
  
"Huh? Who's there?" Janie answered as they stopped and turned.  
  
A teenaged boy with dark green hair stood a distance away. He was dressed in a blue vest and gray shorts and held a Pokeball in his hand.  
  
"Are you two Pokemon trainers?" He demanded.  
  
"Yeah? So what if we are?" Janie shot back. Tracey saw the sparkle of challenge in her eyes.  
  
"My name's Ace. How about a battle? I've been out here for days, and I haven't been able to find a single decent opponent."  
  
"I accept!" Janie said readily. She plucked Pichu up from her shoulder and handed it to Tracey. "Trace, could you look after Pichu for me? I don't like for it to battle."  
  
Tracey smiled and took the small Pokemon into his arms. "Sure. It's been a while since I've seen you battle. Go get him!"  
  
"Thanks," Janie said and turned back to face her opponent. "How many?"  
  
"One on one is fine by me, Sweetheart!" Ace said, producing a Pokeball. "Go! Tauros!"  
  
A brown, bull-like Pokemon appeared. He puffed out a snort and stomped its front hoof on the dirt.  
  
Janie pulled a Pokeball out of her backpack. "Flareon! I choose you!"  
  
After the popping noise and the bright flash of light, Flareon appeared. It did a graceful twirl with its tail and crouched, ready for battle.  
  
"Flareon!"  
  
"Hmph! A Flareon, huh? Okay, go Tauros! Tackle attack!" Ace ordered. The Tauros came stampeding towards Flareon.  
  
"Pi. Pichu!" Pichu cried and clung to Tracey as the ground beneath them rumbled. Tauros ran at full speed towards Flareon. Tracey looked at his sister nervously. Why hadn't she given Flareon any commands to counter attack?  
  
"Flareon! Jump!" Janie commanded suddenly. Flareon pounced high up into the air just as the Tauros came zooming by under it. It slid as it struggled to halt and turn back, sending dust flying everywhere.  
  
"Flamethrower!" Janie called.  
  
"Flare!" Flareon's eyes began glowing ominously. It landed back on the ground with ease and whirled, its head lowered. Snapping its head up, a powerful explosive stream of flames erupted from its mouth.  
  
"Look out Tauros!" Ace yelled quickly. The Tauros stumbled clumsily as fast as its stubby legs would allow to avoid the cascade of fire. "Take Down!"   
  
"Get out of the way, Flareon!" Janie hollered. The Tauros barreled into Flareon just as it hopped aside. Hit from the side, Flareon tumbled a few times before stopping in a dusty heap. The Tauros reared again and got ready to do another take down.  
  
Flareon didn't look ready to give up, though. It shakily got to its feet and faced the Tauros down.  
  
"Pi! Pi! Pi-chu!" Pichu cheered.  
  
"Wow. Janie's Flareon must have a lot of experience. It just got hit by a Tauros and it's still battling," Tracey commented in awe.  
  
"Do it, Tauros!" Ace screamed. Tauros began running.  
  
"Flareon, don't be afraid of it! Quick Attack!"  
  
Flareon took off with an amazing burst of agility. It dashed right past the Tauros, turned, and rammed into the Tauros full force from behind. The larger Pokemon stumbled forward and collapsed with a cry of surprise.  
  
"Finish it, Flareon! Flamethrower!"  
  
The dazed Tauros could not escape the sizzling flames this time. It roared in pain as Flareon blasted another huge burst of fire at it. It fainted, overworked from the intense battle.  
  
"Tauros, return!" a red beam shot out from the Pokeball in Ace's hand and surrounded the fallen Pokemon.  
  
"Way to go, Janie!" Tracey cheered proudly.  
  
"Pi, Pichu. Pi!" Pichu added sweetly.  
  
Flareon let out a triumphant cry and rushed into Janie's outstretched arms. She laughed as it tackled her playfully to the ground.  
  
"You were great, Flareon!" Janie replied and stood up. Flareon ribbed up against her leg affectionately.  
  
"That was great, Janie!" Tracey congratulated when he ran up to her with Pichu.  
  
"Pichu!" Pichu put in and jumped into her arms.  
  
"Thanks you two," Janie blushed at the praise.  
  
Across from them, Ace was walking towards them. He smiled and offered a hand to Janie.  
  
"That was an excellent battle. Thanks a lot. Now I know that my Pokemon and I need to do more training," He said as he shook her hand.  
  
"No, thank you. I really had to work for that victory," Janie said.  
  
"You're pretty good for a kid. Do you have Pokegear?"  
  
"Sure do."  
  
"Can we exchange numbers? I'd like a rematch someday."  
  
"Sounds good."  
  
Tracey listened to the exchange in puzzlement. What was Pokegear? Janie reached into a pocket inside her vest and produced a small device that looked like a flip phone combined with a small circular computer screen.  
  
Janie and Ace took a moment to exchange numbers before stepping back from one another.  
  
"It was nice meeting you Janie. I hope we'll battle again someday so that I can beat you," Ace said.  
  
"We'll see," Janie replied. Ace smirked and left.  
  
Tracey eyed his sister with new respect. "What's Pokegear?"  
  
"This," Janie said a held the device out for Tracey to see. "It's a phone, map, clock, and calendar. It really helps me a lot on my journey."  
  
"Cool," Tracey commented and Janie tucked it back into her vest. Then she laughed a little.  
  
"What is it?" Tracey asked, surprised that she had just burst out laughing.  
  
"Nothing. I've just got this feeling that this is going to be one crazy trip," Janie answered.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I don't know. Just a prediction, I guess."  
  
"That's optimistic," Tracey said sarcastically as they began walking again.  
  
It took them a hour to get through the Viridian Forest. Tracey and Janie stood at a fork that branched off to Marble Jade City and Ivory City.  
  
"What's in Marble Jade City, Janie?" Tracey asked curiously.  
  
"I don't know. I've never been there. Why don't we go there after we leave Ivory City? I heard they've got a lot of ancient stuff involving Pokemon there," Janie said.  
  
"Sounds good."  
  
Just as they were about to turn off towards Ivory City, a frantic call stopped them.  
  
"SOMEONE! HELP ME! PLEASE!!!!!"  
  
  
A/N: If you're worried that Janie's going to steal Tracey's spotlight, don't be. I just needed a way for Tracey to see that Janie has grown up. It'll play a big part later on in the story. Besides, I like Tracey too much to do that to him. R/R!   



	4. A New Friend

The Tracey Chronicles  
  
A/N: I haven't gotten any reviews for the last chapter I posted and I'm a little sad about it but...I refuse to give up on this fic! It took me a little while to write this because I've had this terrible case of writer's block.  
  
Chapter 4: A New Friend   
  
"SOMEONE HELP!" the voice cried again.  
  
"It sounds like someone is in trouble, come on Janie!" Tracey said and took off towards the forest. The two of them ran until Tracey caught sight of a large gray creature in a clearing up ahead. He halted abruptly and extended his arm out so Janie wouldn't rush by him and get herself hurt.  
  
The large gray creature turned out to be a Rhydon, a powerful rock Pokemon. It was looming over a little boy sprawled out on the ground in front of it. Even from the distance, Tracey could see the look of terror on the boy's face as he helplessly stared up at the large Pokemon. Standing between the boy and the Rhydon, a small brown fox-like Pokemon called Eevee was valiantly trying to defend the boy. It looked on the verge of collapse, but seemed determined to protect the boy.  
  
"Eevee! Look out!" the boy shouted as the Rhydon let out a tremendous roar and stomped forward. Tracey felt a slight tremor run through the ground.  
  
"Eee," the Eevee said, its little face tightening in determination. The Rhydon roared angrily and charged forward. Eevee crouched and then sprang at Rhydon's face. The rock Pokemon jerked its head violently and easily struck the smaller Pokemon. Eevee yelped and began plummeting towards the ground, but the Rhydon whirled at the last second and swung at it with its large tail.  
  
"Vee!" Eevee cried out in pain as it slammed into a tree. It plopped to the ground and lay unconscious in a heap of pain. Rhydon roared again and raised his foot over the still form.  
  
"EEVEE! NO!" the boy screamed frantically and struggled to his feet, but crumpled holding his ankle and wincing.  
  
Janie gasped. "No! Stop!"  
  
"Pi-chu!" Pichu protested at the same time, waving its chubby fist in the air.  
  
"That's enough!" Tracey threw a Poke Ball. "Marill, go! Use water gun!"  
  
"Marill mar!" Marill appeared from her Poke Ball. Immediately, her body puffed up slightly. Then a massive burst of water blasted out of her mouth. It hit the Rhydon with intense force right in the face, forcing it off the injured Eevee.  
  
The rock Pokemon growled in pain as the water gun continued its assault. It was driven back against the trees and began thrashing about wildly. It struck trees with such force that they began to fall!  
  
"Marill! Return!" Tracey ordered, holding out the Poke Ball. His Pokemon immediately complied but the Rhydon was far too upset. It continued to flail around, knocking more trees down. The ground rumbled as it stomped around.  
  
Tracey ducked as a shower of twigs and leaves rained down on him. He glanced up sharply when he heard the distinct sound of wood snapping. Another tree was going down fast. And it was going to land right on the boy!  
  
He was moving before he knew it. Tracey dashed across the distance, noting out of the corner of his eye that Janie and Pichu were running for the unconscious Eevee. With a soft grunt, Tracey threw himself at the boy and swept him up into a protective hug. The momentum of his feet made them roll away just as the large tree crashed down, making Tracey's ears ring from the deafening.  
  
After a moment, Tracey opened his eyes. He looked down at the boy to make sure he was okay. To his relief, the boy's eyes flickered open and quickly darted around.  
  
"Are you okay?" Tracey asked, sitting up.  
  
The boy nodded timidly. "Um, I think so...where's Eevee?! Eevee!"  
  
Tracey jumped to his feet after the boy and quickly looked around. "Janie! Pichu! Janie!"  
  
"Over here!" Janie's voice sounded muffled. A second later, Tracey saw her head pop up from behind the large fallen tree trunk. He and the boy hopped over the trunk to join her. She had the Eevee cradled in her arms and Pichu was standing next to her. Tracey was so relieved to see that she wasn't hurt.  
  
"Eevee, oh no," the boy whispered as he took Eevee from Janie.  
  
"It's in really bad shape. We have to get it to a-" Janie was interrupted by a sudden roar. Tracey glanced up in surprise to the Rhydon, weaken but no very angry.  
  
Pichu jumped up onto the trunk before anyone could react. Sparks began shooting out of its cheek patches. Then it surrounded its entire body. "PICHU!!!"  
  
Pichu sent a surge of electricity in the Rhydon's direction. The rock Pokemon screamed in pain. Tracey was confused for a second since electric attacks usually didn't faze rock Pokemon. Then he realized that Rhydon had still been wet from Marill's attack and Pichu had been counting on that.  
  
The Rhydon gave a loud cry of defeat and hobbled away. Pichu slumped and tumbled into Janie's waiting arms.  
  
"Good job, Pichu. You'll get it some day," Tracey heard Janie say affectionately. Even though Pichu could conduct electricity, it was still too young to know how to control it from zapping itself when it attacked. It was a common problem with all Pichu.  
  
"Eevee! Eevee, wake up!" the boy was saying to the limp Pokemon in his arms. He stared up at Tracey desperately, tears brimming in his eyes. "Why won't it wake up?"  
  
"We need to find a Pokemon Center fast," Tracey said. "Isn't there one in Ivory City?"  
  
"There is, but that's too far away. I think there's one in Meadow Valley. It's not that far from here," Janie put in after she checked the map on her PokeGear and pointed to the west. "It's pretty close from here."  
  
"Can we go? Please!" the child was getting frantic. Suddenly, Tracey noticed that it was getting darker. He glanced up when a faint rumbling sound echoed ominously from the sky. To his disbelief, he saw dark, thick clouds gathering and flashes of lightning snake their way through them.  
  
"We should hurry," Tracey said finally and began running in the direction Janie had pointed out. Janie and the boy followed him. Pelts of rain began falling. Tracey groaned inwardly. This was turning out to be quite a day.  
  
"Tracey! There it is!" Janie called suddenly. A pretty little town with small houses and farms was stretched out bellow the hill. Tracey felt relief wash over him at the sight of Meadow Valley, but it quickly diminished when an ear-splitting crack of thunder roar furiously through the heavens. He motioned for Janie and the boy to follow him when he spotted a building with a large red "P" on it.  
  
By the time they reached the Pokemon Center, Tracey was thoroughly drenched, out of breath, and shivering a bit from the cold. His sister and the boy looked to be in the same shape he was, but the boy was solely focused on caring for his Pokemon. He charged into the Pokemon Center ahead of the Sketchit siblings and ran right up to the desk where Nurse Joy and a Chansey were standing.  
  
"Nurse Joy! My Eevee needs help!" the boy cried.  
  
"Oh my goodness!" Nurse Joy exclaimed when she saw the boy's Eevee. " Chansey, prepare a stretcher for an Eevee."  
  
"Chansey!" Chansey said and quickly left.  
  
The boy had started crying. "Please take care of it!"  
  
Nurse Joy smiled reassuringly to him. "Don't worry. I'll do whatever I can. You and your friends just get yourselves warmed up." She called over to some Chansey and ordered them to bring them some blankets and soup.  
  
Tracey carefully slid his wet backpack off and put it down. He sat down next to Janie on a bright red couch that was in the lobby. Pichu had recovered from shocking itself and was trying to dry itself by shaking its body, making Tracey and Janie even more wet.  
  
"Pichu? Pi, pi chu?" Pichu asked, tilting its small head as it glanced around.  
  
"We're at a Pokemon Center Pichu," Janie answered. Tracey looked up when the boy came over and sat down next to him, looking distracted and very worried.  
  
"Chansey! Chansey!" a pair of Chansey bounded over to them with blankets and bowls of hot soup.  
  
"Thank you," Tracey said as he accepted the offerings. He was hungry and eager to eat the soup, but he was also curious about the boy.  
  
"Um...I never thanked you," the boy said suddenly.  
  
Tracey grinned. "No problem. My name's Tracey, by the way."  
  
"I'm Janie and this is Pichu," Janie added.  
  
"Pi-chu!" Pichu piped up and tentatively sipped at the bowl of soup it was sharing with Janie.  
  
"I'm Mikey. I really appreciate your help," the boy replied, managing a small smile.  
  
"Say...what were you doing out there by yourself Mikey?" Tracey asked.  
  
"I was on my way to Bubble Town," Mikey replied.  
  
Janie looked incredulous. "But all by yourself? Do you have a Pokemon license yet?"   
  
Mikey shook his head. "No, I'm not old enough yet. But I had to go. My brothers are missing."  
  
"Your brothers?" Tracey asked.  
  
"Yeah. My brothers Sparky, Pyro, and Rainer left home a few months ago to go explore the new region, but I never heard from them. Not even once. Every time they go off somewhere, they always call and tell me where they are pretty often. I got worried so I decided to go look for them myself," Mikey said.  
  
The names clicked in Tracey's brain. "Wait a second. Are you a part of the Battling Eevee Brothers?"  
  
Mikey nodded, looking proud. "Yup! I'm the baby."  
  
Janie was gawking at him. "Wow."  
  
Mikey dropped his gaze, suddenly looking ashamed with tears in his eyes. "But I'm not fit to be one. Look at how I got my Eevee hurt! It wouldn't have gotten hurt if it hadn't been trying to protect me!"   
  
Tracey put his hand on the boy's shoulder and gave him a sympathetic smile. "Hey, don't worry about it. Eevee was just doing what it had too to protect you. Don't feel bad. Eevee doesn't want you to."  
  
Mikey sniffed, but when he looked up, Tracey could see that the guilt was slightly faded from his face. "Thanks a lot Tracey. You two are really good trainers. I just love your Marill! Are you two going to be Pokemon Masters?"  
  
"I am one day. Right Pichu?" Janie said.  
  
"Pi, pichu!" Pichu cheered.  
  
"What about you Tracey?" Mikey asked, looking at him curiously.  
  
"I'm a Pokemon Watcher," Tracey replied.  
  
"Wow, really? We need some more of those around. You're one of the only Pokemon Watchers I've ever met," Mikey said.  
  
Mikey's last statement brought back the memory of that unpleasant conversation he had overheard. Bitterness coated Tracey's response faintly. "You're probably the only one who thinks so, Mikey."  
  
Tracey saw Janie jerk her head over abruptly to look at him. She looked concerned, obviously catching the nuance in his tone. Brother's intuition told him that she wouldn't let him get away until she was informed what was going on. Mikey seemed to not notice as he just sat, politely nodding.  
  
"Say, Tracey," Janie said, her eyes never leaving his face. "Shouldn't you give Professor Oak a call? I'm sure he's getting worried about you."  
  
"Doubtful," Tracey muttered softly.  
  
"What was that?" Janie asked, her eyes revealing her concern.  
  
"Er...right. I should," Tracey answered and stood to look for a phone. He was reluctant to call. Why should he? He didn't want to impose on the professor anymore.  
  
As Tracey reached for the phone, the doors of the Pokemon Center flew open and slammed into the walls. Wind and rain rushed in. Loud cracks of thunder erupted like firecrackers from outside. Tracey stepped away from the phone and stuck his head out to see who had entered the Pokemon Center so abruptly. A very tense and soaked girl ran in.  
  
"Someone! Help!" She cried and keeled over on the floor, panting heavily. Tracey stepped forward to help her up as Nurse Joy rushed up to her. The lights flickered as another rumble of thunder came from outside.   
  
"Veronica? What is it?" Nurse Joy asked.  
  
"The Pokemon Nursery is being raided! They're stealing all the baby Pokemon!" she cried. "They hurt my uncle and started grabbing all the Pokemon! I barely escaped. Please get Jenny!"  
  
"Right," Tracey go to his feet and went back to the phone. He picked up the receiver and began dialing when he realized something. It was dead.  
  
"The phone's out," Tracey said, looking back at the two.  
  
Veronica buried her face in her hands. "Oh no! Those crooks will take all the babies!"  
  
At this point, Janie, Pichu, and Mikey walked up to join Tracey. Mikey looked at the girl and then at Tracey curiously. "What's going on?"  
  
"Someone's kidnapping the Pokemon and I can't do a thing to stop it!" Veronica wailed.  
  
"Huh?" Janie said puzzled.  
  
"Veronica..." Nurse Joy started, looking concerned and worried.  
  
Tracey kneeled in front of the weeping girl. "Tell me, where's the Pokemon Nursery?"  
  
Veronica glanced up. Her eyes were brimming with tears, but her expression was one of complete surprise. "A few blocks down the road. Why?"  
  
"I have to know if I'm going to help you save those babies," Tracey replied.  
  
  
A/N: I really like this chapter for some reason. I've been having trouble thinking up ideas for this fic and when I did, I was ecstatic! Anyway, did you like it? From the responses I got before I had to re-upload it, people like Janie and Pichu so far. That makes me so happy! Anyway, read and review! 


	5. Offering a Helping Hand

****

The Tracey Chronicles

Author's Notes: At last the long awaited Chapter Five is here! Sorry for the wait folks but I just couldn't get any solid ideas down for the progression of this story. Thank you all who stuck it out with me.

Chapter Five: Offering a Helping Hand

Veronica stared up at Tracey. "Help me? You'd do that? Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!"

Before Tracey could reply, Janie put in, "I'm going too."

"No," Tracey said immediately. "You need to stay here just in case something happens."

"Something happens? But Tracey-" Janie began to protest but he didn't let her finish.

"Janie, someone needs to stay here with the Pokemon in the center. What if the center gets attacked? You and Mikey can stay and protect them."

He saw the struggle on her face and was a bit worried that she wouldn't listen. Janie had always been headstrong, even as a little girl. Tracey, being the more responsible and natural elder of the two, had always been protective of her because of her wily, adventurous nature that had often gotten her into nasty scrapes. She _had_ to comply. If Janie went and got hurt…

"Fine," Janie said finally, her reluctance obvious in her voice. "But be careful!"

Tracey nodded, then turned to glance at Veronica expectantly. She, looking quite upset and anxious, said, "The nursery isn't far. Follow me!"

With that, she whirled and disappeared out of the doors in a wild dash. Tracey followed hearing Mikey's cry of, "Good luck" behind him.

He winced at cold, harsh drops of water hit his face. The rain was still pouring down in full force, wind whipping all about him unmercifully and nearly sending him stumbling many times. There were periodic flashes of lightning overhead, pursued by angry grumbles of thunder. Still, Tracey and Veronica continued on.

She led him down the road in full sprint. They rounded a corner and stopped dead at the sight, both taking in what was happening before them.

"Oh no! Uncle Ray! The babies!" Veronica screamed on the verge of tears.

The small edifice bearing a dangling sign "Meadow Valley Pokemon Nursery" was in shambles. A gigantic steel tank-like vehicle had collided right into its side. There was a gaping hole where half of the vehicle was buried in the building. Tracey ducked behind a bush, pulling Veronica with him, and peered out to assess what was going on.

He squinted to see better through the endless sheets of rain bearing down on them. He saw some Pokemon standing around doing as their trainers ordered them. A band of people-about six or seven of them- were quickly running in and out of the makeshift entrance, holding small bundles and tossing them into the back of the vehicle. A suspicious red mark was painted on the side. Tracey scuttled closer to get a better look.

TR. Team Rocket.

"It's Team Rocket," He said disgustedly to Veronica.

She was distressed by this. "Team Rocket? Oh no, we have to stop them! They'll hurt the babies!"

"There's too many of them! We can't take them all!" Tracey yelled over the rain with a shake of his head. "Is there any other way in?"

Veronica fell silent for a moment. Her eyes lit up and she nodded vigorously, "Yes! Around the other side! Come on!"

Using the bushes as cover, they carefully made their way around the building. Veronica pointed to a pair of wooden doors leading to a basement of the nursery that the Team Rocket members had obviously not found since it was undisturbed. Tracey nodded and glanced around before motioning for her to head for it.

Veronica pulled it open and slipped in, Tracey right behind her. It was nice to be out of the storm even though the basement was cold and dark. Tracey heard some shuffling around from the girl and a moment later, there was suddenly a soft light emanating from a lamp in Veronica's hand.

"This way," the blond gestured towards the stairs. Tracey tentatively climbed them, his had already reaching for a Poke Ball as he neared the door at the top. Easing it open, he cautiously scanned the hall. Empty. Good.

"Come on, the coast is clear," Tracey whispered and stepped out.

As fate would have it, the moment he did, the hall proved indeed to not be empty. A Team Rocket member, garbed in a black and white Team Rocket uniform, suddenly appeared from around the corner. He spotted Tracey and Veronica and halted.

"Hey! You shouldn't be here!" He snarled.

"Well you guys shouldn't either, you scumbag!" Veronica snapped.

"Scumbag? You better watch your mouth, toots," the Rocket pulled a Poke Ball out. "Go Marowak! Teach them some manners!"

A fierce-looking Pokemon wearing a skull on his head and holding a bone one hand appeared. It fixed its baleful gaze on them and shouted threateningly, "Maro-wak!"

"Venonat, I choose you!" Tracey threw his own Poke Ball and unleashed his bug Pokemon.

"Venonat!" Venonat screeched. The battle began.

"Marowak, Head Butt!"

"Watch out, Venonat!" 

Marowak lowered its head and charged at Venonat. The bug Pokemon nimbly sidestepped; then hopped backwards evasively as Marowak came back at it again. Venonat sprang onto a chair just in time to avoid Marowak who hurled its head right into a wall, dazing it momentarily from the impact.

"Venonat!" Tracey ordered. "Tackle!"

"Venon-nat!" Venonat bounded off of the chair and threw itself at Marowak.

"Bone Club!" the Rocket shrieked. Marowak's reaction time was a bit slow but just enough to bring the bone up just in time to bash Venonat directly on the face.

"Venooooooooo!" the bug Pokemon cried as it tumbled backwards, taken surprise by the shot.

"Hang in there, Venonat!" Tracey encouraged. "Get up and try again! Watch out!"

"Maro!" Marowak was running towards Venonat, club raised over its head. Venonat snapped itself out of the stupor and jumped high straight up. It landed on Marowak's head, pushed its body weight down on the skull (which earned a shrill cry of protest from Venonat's opponent) and then hopped a safe distance away.

The Rocket was growing agitated. "Marowak! Use Bonebarang!"

Marowak reared its arm back and hurled the bone club at Venonat. The bone spun rapidly like a fan as it zipped around and then straight at the bug Pokemon. Venonat jumped with a shrill cry of surprise when the bone missed it by centimeters. Marowak's bone shot past Venonat and then swooped back in a furious arc, once more heading towards its target.

"Venonat! Jump! Watch out!" Tracey yelled.

Venonat did so just in time. The bone barely missed it and returned to Marowak's hand. For a second the two Pokemon glared each other down.

"Marowak! Thrash!"

"Maro-WAK!" Marowak rushed at Venonat, flailing its body at it.

Tracey's mind raced through possible strategies as he watched Venonat smartly dodge and avoid Marowak's rapid-fire blows. A few hit their mark but Venonat was determined not to give in.

"Stun Spore!" ordered Tracey.

His Pokemon took a single hop backwards. Then it hurdled its small body high into the air and began shaking erratically. A shimmering sheet of blue powder was discharged from the pores on Venonat's body, creating a sparkling cloud around it. A cloud that Marowak threw itself right into.

"Marowak, no!" the Rocket hollered unhappily. Marowak had abruptly stopped moving as the stun spore did its work and paralyzed it. It closed its eyes tightly and uttered incessantly as its body refused to move.

"Finish it, Venonat! Tackle!"

Venonat made a mad dash at Marowak, body tensed for the impact. With a triumphant cry, it slammed into the immobile Marowak. The normal type cried out in pain as it was sent hurtling violently through the air. It skidded along the ground painfully, coming to a stop at the Rocket's feet unconscious. Venonat had won.

"Veno, veno!" Venonat screeched proudly.

"Good job, Venonat!" Tracey cheered.

The Rocket returned the knocked out Marowak to its Poke Ball. He glared at Tracey. "You won this round! But if you think you can take on the rest of Team Rocket, think again!"

He pivoted and ran. Veronica stepped forward with a concerned look on her face, "Tracey, I think he's going to call for reinforcements. We have to hurry!"

"Where's the-" Tracey was cut off by a loud, unfamiliar voice behind them.

"Veronica!"

They turned to find a man in torn and dirty clothes, bruises marring his skin and a large red stain on his shirt where he pressed a hand. He was leaning heavily on the wall and his breathing was ragged. Veronica gasped, "Uncle Ray! Oh thank goodness you're okay!"

She ran to him and offered her arms in support. He gazed at her wearily, then eyed Tracey. "Who is this?"

"This is Tracey, Uncle Ray. He's here to help us."

"I-I'm grateful, young man. But I'm afraid there are just too many of them. You won't stand a chance. They've already cleared out half of the nursery."

"Nurse Joy went to get Officer Jenny. The police should be here any moment. We just have to distract them until they do," Tracey said grimly, ignoring the chilling thought of his three Pokemon taking on the entire squad of Rockets he had seen outside.

"There they are! Get em'!" The Rockets had found them. They were spilling into the hall after the Rocket Tracey had battled.

"Run!" Veronica yelled, clutching at her uncle and helping him hobble along. Tracey threw out Marril's Poke Ball and released her.

"Venonat, use supersonic! Marril, back Venonat up with a water gun!"

"Venonat!"

"Marril!"

Venonat let out an incredibly loud, nerve-wracking sound that instantly made the Rockets stumble and attempt to block their ears from the horrible sound. Marril followed this by puffing her body up and then unleashing a gushing torrent of water from her mouth. It hit the few Rockets unfortunate enough to be in the front of the group and knocked them down. The Rockets fell on other Rockets behind them, causing the domino effect as they all began to fall on top of each other and curse or cry out in pain.

"Both of you, return!" Tracey called them back. He took advantage of the Rocket's momentary distraction and dashed in the direction that Veronica had dragged Ray off to. 

"Psst! Tracey! Over here!" Veronica was waving at him from a doorway to is left. He found Veronica and Ray in a pale pink room that had several cradles and beds spread out around them. For a moment, he thought it was just them in there until he heard a tiny cry, "Clef-fa!"

Startled, Tracey looked down and found a round, pink Pokemon staring up at him with huge curious eyes. It tilted its head and squeaked, "Cleffa!"

And it was followed by a series of other calls. Tracey browsed around and saw other tiny bodies shyly peeping out from various hiding spots to peer at him. Veronica smiled at his confusion. "This is the Cleffa nursery."

"I see," Tracey replied, then looked up as he heard angry marching coming down the hall. The Rockets had recovered, apparently.

Ray looked at Tracey worriedly, "We have to get these little ones out of here before they get them too."

"I think I have an idea," replied the Pokemon watcher carefully. He motioned to the door. "I'll distract them. You two get the Cleffa and get to the basement. You can get them out."

"What? But what about you?"

"Don't worry, I have my Pokemon to protect me," Tracey answered, though even to him that didn't sound very promising considering he only had three Pokemon. The noise was getting louder. "Hurry! They're getting closer!"

Tracey didn't wait for a response, instead taking off and running into the hall just as the angry mob of Rockets rounded the corner. He waved his arms wildly, "Hey! Over here! Come and get my if you can, you idiots!"

He was met with enraged snarls. They surged towards him, prompting Tracey to start running. He ran down the hall in hopes of leading them as far away from Veronica and Ray as he could. The building, small as it was, had a myriad of turns that eventually led Tracey to the large opening in the side of the building where the tank-like vehicle had smashed into it.

"Uh oh," Tracey muttered to himself as other Rockets-the ones who hadn't abandoned what they were doing to catch him-turned and spotted him. In their arms were scared baby Pokemon who were all whimpering and staring at Tracey pleadingly.

"Ha! Now you're trapped!" the Rockets who had been chasing him filed into the room. They surrounded him, forming a semicircle around him.

"Wigglytuff, flash!"

Tracey instinctively closed his eyes as a blinding, white light suddenly exploded over the room. He heard the Rockets cry out in surprise, some in pain as the light blinded them momentarily.

"Tracey! Come on!" Veronica was eagerly waving at him towards where she and a chubby pink Pokemon with large blue eyes was standing. He ran to her, eyeing the new Pokemon. Veronica smiled as she ran ahead of him, "This is Wigglytuff! He helps Uncle Ray out around the nursery. Uncle Ray's waiting, come on!"

Some of the Rockets were rolling around on the ground, hands covering their faces and moaning in pain at their temporary blindness. The time was enough to allow them to escape. They squeezed through the hole the Rockets had made out of the wall.

"Going somewhere?" a cold voice demanded authoritatively after them. Both Tracey and Veronica skidded to a halt and turned to find a person Tracey had not seen before watching them from atop the vehicle buried in the nursery's side.

Ice blue eyes glared at them impassively. His hair was dark and slicked back smoothly, enhancing the sharp features of his face. He was obviously a Rocket by the Team Rocket insignia elaborately pinned to his vest. But something about him alerted Tracey immediately that this was no grunt like the others he'd encountered.

"I'm afraid I can't allow you to leave, children," He spoke with a contained look of malice in his eyes. Suddenly a Poke Ball was in his hands and thrown, "Steelix, come one out."

There was a subtle thud and shake of the ground as a huge, snake-like Pokemon with a body made up entirely of chunks of hard metal appeared. It reared it's flat, oval shaped head back and let out an earth-shattering cry. Tracey gawked at it for a moment. By the luster of its body and size of the horn on his head, this was obviously an experienced Pokemon.

_How can our Pokemon even stand up to THAT?_ Tracey thought grimly. His hand shot towards his Poke Ball. Scyther and Venonat wouldn't stand a chance. _But maybe…_

"Marril! Come on!"

Marril emerged, perkily announcing her announcement. Next she saw the large Pokemon leering angrily down at her. She looked up at it and squeaked fearfully before darting to hide behind Tracey. _Well, so much for that theory._

"Wigglytuff, use sing!" yelled Veronica. Wigglytuff opened its mouth and sucked in breath, but the stranger, looking mildly amused, intervened.

"Don't insult us so, lass. Steelix, tail whip," he said. Steelix grumbled loudly at the same time it whirled its massive body and lashed out with its tail. It plowed into Wigglytuff's soft body and sent it careening aside.

"Wiggly!" Wigglytuff bellowed in pain as it smashed through a tree branch, severing its connection with the rest of the tree. Then he flopped onto the pavement a few feet away, landing ungracefully in a bruised heap.

Veronica looked horrified. "Wigglytuff! NO!"

_It did that in _**one**_ shot._ Tracey thought, shocked.

The stranger watched her run towards the hurt Pokemon before fixing those cold icy eyes on Tracey. He beckoned to him with a little gesture of his drawn hand. "Come now, lad. Don't be shy. Send your little Marril to fight, we've got time."

"Who are you?" Tracey asked instead.

The stranger just narrowed his eyes. "Your opponent. Okay, since you don't want to, we'll take the initiative. Steelix, bind them."

Steelix gave another thundering rumble from its throat and began advancing perilously on Tracey and Marril.

"Marril, give it a water gun," Tracey called out quickly. Marril assented with an incredible burst of water from its tiny body. The water blasted at Steelix, hitting it right in the face. But it didn't even flinch. Calmly, it just kept coming towards them.

Suddenly, sirens filled the air. Tracey jerked his head over. Relief filled him at the sight of several police motorcycles speeding down the street in their direction. But the relief quickly turned to fear as the Steelix lurched forward and headbutted Marril. Her sharp squeal of agony shot a pang of worry of concern through his heart. Without even pausing to think, Tracey jumped forward, arms outstretched, and let out an "Oof!" as Marril flew into his arms and hit his chest.

She moaned softly and slumped against him. Tracey looked up at the stranger. To his surprise, the stranger was shaking his head and tsking, "Yet another unworthy falls. On with my travels then." His look at Tracey was one of disappointment as he returned the Steelix to its Poke Ball.

"Tracey!" Janie's voice distracted Tracey and he looked up to find her swooping down on Pidgeot. She looked worried and urged Pidgeot to fly faster.

"Hey there!" Officer Jenny said as she and several other officers joined Tracey. "Is everyone okay? We got here as fast as we could."

"It was Team Rocket," Tracey said, pointing towards the car. He blinked when he turned his head. "Hey, where'd he go?"

"Where'd who go?" Jenny asked distractedly as she directed her men to arrest the Rockets and get some medical treatment for Veronica and Ray.

"This guy I was-"

"TRACEY!"

A blur of blue tackled him in a hug, so abruptly that he almost lost his balance. "J-Janie! It's okay! I'm fine!"

"I was so worried! Don't you EVER make me do that again!" Janie scowled at him. "The next time something happens, I am going with you, understand?!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," Tracey soothed, gently pushing her away from him. He looked up at the sky, frowning thoughtfully. How had the stranger disappeared so fast?

A scary thought made a chill run down Tracey's spine. _Whoever that guy was, he was on Team Rocket. Which means he might be off beating up on some other poor Pokemon._ Tracey sighed and looked down at his little Marril. _I hope I _**never**_ run into him again._


	6. Understanding

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The Tracey Chronicles

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, those of you who have actually been keeping up with this story. Hopefully, I won't disappoint. Enjoy.

****

Chapter Six: Understanding

After giving his account of what had happened to Officer Jenny and bidding farewell to a grateful Veronica and Ray, all Tracey wanted to do was change out of his uncomfortable, wet clothing and eat something warm. One of Jenny's police officers was nice enough to off him and Janie a ride back to the Pokemon Center. They accepted and rode back in silence, watching the dark clouds in the sky drift away as the storm began lightening up.

Tracey didn't notice at first, but the entire way back, Janie kept throwing him odd, furtive looks. Her eyes would quickly dart in his direction, stare for a moment, and then turn away…only to repeat the process a few seconds later. After a few cycles, it got to him and he turned to look at her directly.

"What?"

She seemed surprised that he had caught her. "What, what?"

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?"

"Looking at you like what?"

"Janie…I'm not in the mood for games…"

"It's nothing," Janie answered, looking away from him and out the window. She'd said it quickly. A little TOO quickly, Tracey noted. Which, of course, meant it was something.

"You're a terrible liar."

"Whatever."

Before he could say anything in return, they were pulling up in front of the Pokemon Center. Tracey spotted Mikey waiting anxiously for them in front of the wide doors with Pichu sitting on his head. His large blue eyes lit up when he saw the police cruiser stop.

"Tracey! You're back! Are you okay?" Mikey immediately demanded as he ran up to them.

"PI-CHU!" Pichu dove off of the boy's head and right into Janie, burying its small face into her chest.

"I'm fine. Everything's okay," Tracey replied with a confident grin.

"Did you stop the bad guys from stealing the Pokemon?"

"Yeah, but we'll talk about it later. I'm freezing."

Janie frowned at him disapprovingly, reminding Tracey of how eerily she resembled their mother when she was displeased. "And it's no wonder. Look at you! You're soaked. Imagine that, running out in the middle of a storm…come on. Let's get you changed before you get yourself sick."

Nurse Joy, who greeted them warmly, met them when they entered. She quickly called for Chansey to bring some towels and dinner. Tracey was practically attacked by a group of concerned Chansey. "Chansey! Chansey!"

"Gah! Hey, watch it-mmmfff!" Tracey's voice grew muffled as a Chansey threw a towel over his head and started roughly rubbing it to dry his hair.

Janie, enjoying this far too much, quickly pawed through his backpack to find some dry clothes to replace the wet ones. She assembled a shirt and shorts for him and found some socks. Giggling at his befuddled expression as the Chansey finished its assault on his hair, Janie handed him the clothes.

"You might need these, Trace."

"Thanks," Tracey fended off the Chansey when they started following him to the bathroom to help him change, claiming he could do it himself.

"Wow," He heard Mikey muse to Janie, "I thought the stories of unrivaled service in the Pokemon Center of Meadow Valley were just rumors…"

When Tracey was comfortably dry and warm, he made his way to the counter. He took out his Poke Balls with Marill and Venonat and handed them to Joy. "They got pretty banged up in the battles I had with Team Rocket."

She nodded understandingly while taking them from him. "Nothing a little treatment and rest won't cure. Go relax, Tracey. You're the hero, tonight."

Tracey blushed, "No, I'm not-"

"But you are, Tracey!" Mikey interrupted, looking at him with a look of awe. "You're so brave! You just rushed off to help that girl the moment you heard the Pokemon Nursery was in trouble!"

"And you even managed to save the day," Janie added with a proud smile.

"Oh come on, guys. You're embarrassing me," He muttered and sat down to the table. He changed the subject, "Wow, this looks great! I'm starving."

He ate while trying to answer the questions Janie and Mikey fired at him about what had just happened. Joy walked out from the back room and up to their table. "Mikey? Great news. Eevee is going to be just fine."

Mikey leaped to his feet happily. "He is? YES! Can I see him?"

"Of course. This way," Joy gestured towards the door that she had just emerged from. Mikey followed her out of the room, the door swinging shut behind them. A Chansey came by to clear the table as soon as Tracey finished his meal.

"So…are you going to tell me why you keep looking at me like that?" Tracey asked Janie.

"It's nothing," she replied with a shrug. "You're just…so different now."

Tracey frowned. "Different? What do you mean."

His sister shrugged again. "I don't know. You just…are. But not in a bad way."

"Okay…" He answered, not sure how to reply. What did she mean by 'different'?

She seemed to pick up on his confusion. "It's just…I don't know. The Tracey I remember wouldn't have just up and left without a word to anyone." He didn't reply so she arched an eyebrow at him. "What, did you think I wouldn't notice that something was wrong? Come on Tracey, it hasn't been that long."

"I just needed to…get away, you know?" It wasn't a lie, just not the complete truth.

"So you just left? Without telling Professor Oak? He must be worried," Janie continued dubiously.

"Sure he is. That's why he's so eager to get rid of me!" Tracey blurted out sarcastically before he could stop himself. Janie's eyes went wide at this.

"…What?"

"Er…nothing. Look, I think I'm going to go to sleep early. I'm beat and we've got some travelling to do tomorrow. Good night, sis," Tracey quickly said and walked away.

"Okay…good night," he heard Janie reply quietly behind him as turned the corner and disappeared into the room Joy had allowed them to spend the night in.

Janie watched as her brother run away from her again. She looked down at Pichu and absently scratched it behind its ears. "He's not very good at lying either, isn't he, Pichu?"

"Pi-chu," Pichu tilted its head at her inquisitively.

"Yeah, I know," Janie sighed and reached into her backpack to pull out the sketchpad she had found in the dirt by Mrs. Ketchum's house. As she flipped through the pages filled with beautiful, detailed drawings, Tracey's words haunted her.

__

"Sure he is. That's why he's so eager to get rid of me!"

Janie sighed and peered down at the notebook in her hands. It was ironic how Tracey had said words similar to those to her before. Only then, it had been about their father, the result of a terrible argument that had ended with Tracey leaving the Sketchits' household for good.

But that had been years ago. And then, she had been too young to assure him that she loved him, if not anyone else. He was her big brother after all. _Well, that had been then. This was now._

"Pichu," Janie looked down at the curious Pokemon sitting on the table as she closed the sketchpad. "I say we give Professor Oak a call tomorrow. I don't like this. Not at all."

A/N: Yeah, yeah. Pure talking and no action, I know. You try developing a relationship on pure mindless action. Anyway, read and review! Tell me your thoughts.


	7. Embarking

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The Tracey Chronicles

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Chapter Seven: Embarking

They stayed at the Pokemon Center a few days before leaving because the storm had lingered. Tracey didn't mind as it had given him plenty of time to actually talk more with his sister and really catch up with what he had missed since he had left home. To his dismay, he found that he had missed a lot. Several times, Janie had tried to get him to talk about why he had suddenly left Professor Oak's but he'd promptly told her to stay out of the situation. But on a brighter note, in the few days they'd been stuck at the center waiting for the storm to blow over, he'd gotten to know Mikey a little better.

As it turned out, the boy was from a small town called Stone Town at the base of a mountain and was aspiring to be an Eevee trainer like his three older brothers. But, as he'd said earlier, his brothers had disappeared a few months ago when they'd set out to explore a distant, unknown region of the world. Naturally, Mikey had grown worried and decided to take it upon himself to go look for them. Tracey had been impressed that the child had managed to make it this far and still be alive.

"Eevee's a lot tougher than he looks," Mikey gushed proudly when Tracey had complimented him one morning when the two of them were sitting in the guest lounge of the Pokemon Center.

"Eee!" Eevee chimed in merrily, cradled in Mikey's arms. He hadn't wandered far from the boy since Nurse Joy had declared him well enough to leave a day ago.

"Hey guys," Janie said as she emerged from the lobby of the Pokemon center and joined them in the lounge. "The storm cleared up last night. I think it's safe for us to set out now."

"That's great. I was starting to get restless staying here," Tracey said. He stood and stretched. Then, glanced at his sister curiously. "Speaking of which, where are we going anyway?"

"I don't know," Janie shrugged and smiled a bit sheepishly. "I really didn't have any direction in mind to tell you the truth. But Nurse Joy asked me to do her a favor so at least we have a starting point."

"A favor? What kind of favor?"

Janie slung her backpack off and rummaged through it. She revealed a plastic rectangular box with a red Poke Ball sticker on the lid with the Meadow Valley Pokemon Center insignia underneath it. She opened the lid and turned it so Tracey and Mikey could see the contents. "She wanted me to deliver these to the Viridian City Pokemon Center."

Mikey looked at the bottles filled with various colored liquids and frowned. "What are they? Medicine?"

"Yes, something like that," Janie answered, closing the lid to the box and tucking it back into her backpack. "They're running low on resources there and the storm caused some damage to the roads so Viridian's Nurse Joy called Meadow Valley for some help." She looked at Tracey. "Trace, have you ever been there?"

"A few times, running errands for Professor Oak," Tracey replied.

"Well good, we'll have a guide then!" Janie smiled. She picked Pichu up and looked down at Mikey. "So Mikey…what are your plans?"

This seemed to surprise Mikey. "Plans? Oh I, uh, I don't know really…"

"Weren't you planning on heading to Bubble Town?" asked Tracey.

"Yeah, but," Mikey looked down at Eevee and sighed, "I don't think we'll get very far. I want to find my brothers but I think it's too dangerous for Eevee and me to go alone."

"Vee…" Eevee added, sounding depressed.

"So you're going back to Stone Town?" Janie inquired tentatively.

Mikey shrugged half-heartedly, obviously sad. Tracey's heart went out to him. "We'll come with you. You know, just to make sure you get home okay." He looked at Janie to make sure she was okay with the decision. She just smiled briefly and shrugged.

"Thanks a lot," Mikey offered them a shy smile in return.

"Well we're not going to get far just standing around here," Janie piped up cheerfully. "Let's hit the road, troops!"

It was a beautiful day. The storm had completely cleared up and left a crisp, blue sky inhabited only by the bright sun and a few straggly white clouds. Tracey heard Pidgey chirping happily and saw Caterpie and Weedle scuttling about, enjoying the warm sunshine. A Mankey came swinging by overhead on the tree branches. A soft fluttering noise filled the air as a swarm of Butterfree flitted past them.

"I can't thank you enough for doing this for me," Joy said to them as she walked them to the door of the Pokemon Center. Behind her, the Chansey were waving and chanting their good-byes.

"It's no problem Nurse Joy, really," Janie said to her with a bright smile.

"You kids take care. Tell my sister I said hello," Joy grinned gratefully and saw them off.

It was nice to be on the road again, Tracey admitted to himself. As much as he had enjoyed his stay with Professor Oak where he could spend as much time as he wished studying all sorts of different Pokemon, he'd missed having adventures. He sighed. Professor Oak. Just the thought of his idol's name made Tracey sad. It still hurt to think about what the Professor had said about him and how painfully close it was to the words his own father had said to him the night he was disowned.

"Tracey?" Janie was looking at him in concern. "You okay?"

"Huh? Yeah! I'm fine. Just…uh…thinking," Tracey lied and forced a smile to reassure her. She tilted her head at him slightly and regarded him doubtfully but, thankfully, let it go with a nod before turning away.

"Wow! What's that?" Mikey asked excitedly, looking up. The wind was carrying a swarm of Hoppip along over them. It was a long line of the peaceful grass-types, gently crooning as they rode the breeze.

"Those are Hoppip. They're extremely light so whenever there's a wind current, they're easily swept up and carried along. It's an easy method of travelling for them," Tracey informed him. "They usually try to stay on wind currents that lead them away from cities and towns. It gets dangerous because of the buildings."

"Hoppip! Hoppip! Hoppip!" The Hoppip's soft voices could be heard as they drifted along.

"There's so many of them!" Janie remarked.

Tracey nodded, eyes on the drifting Pokemon. "Yeah. Professor Oak and I did a lot of observations on them. They're really amazing. This isn't anything. In some places where there is a lot of Hoppip, it could get really crowded. Come mating season and it becomes chaos."

"Why? What do they do in mating season?" Mikey innocently asked, eyes wide.

Tracey could feel his face flush. He stammered, "U-uh, nothing. It's just…um, it's just a thing…"

Thankfully, though she was thoroughly enjoying his embarrassment at being stuck explaining Pokemon mating, Janie interrupted. "You know what? I say we get off this path and cut through Viridian Forest. It'll be much faster."

"You know what, you're right. Let's go!" Tracey began walking faster, eagerly escaping Mikey and his question.

They found the path that lead straight to Viridian City from the forest. As the three of them walked along, many Pokemon were out and about, some even stopping to peer at them curiously. Janie took it all in stride while Mikey eyed each one in awe. Tracey got the urge several times to whip out his sketchpad and draw some of them but forced himself to stop. It wasn't as if they would matter any more anyway.

"You seem to know your way pretty well around here, Tracey," the younger Sketchit commented suddenly.

"Professor Oak and I did a lot of work out here," Tracey said a bit sadly. "Once, we some how walked off of the path and got completely lost. Thank goodness Marill has such great hearing. She could hear Ash's Snorlax complaining from miles away when lunch time came around!"

"You two must be close," Janie answered neutrally.

Tracey lowered his head a little and shrugged. "Sure…"

"You must miss him, being away and all," she continued lightly.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Well, I'll tell you one thing. He misses you. He's worried you too."

Tracey glanced at her suspiciously. "What? How do you know?"

Janie suddenly looked guilty. Hesitantly, she glanced at him and shrugged a little. "Because he told me…?"

"He told you…" Tracey stopped and stared at her. "Janie, you didn't! Did you call Professor Oak?"

"It's not like you would have!" Janie retorted. "And he is worried about you, Tracey! He's been worried sick since you just disappeared like that. It isn't like you, you know."

"Janie, I told you to stay out of this! You don't even know what happened so just drop it," Tracey replied and started walking away, annoyed with her.

"Tracey…" Janie pleaded but he ignored her and kept walking ahead. His own sister had betrayed him! He couldn't believe this.

Mikey watched uncomfortably as the two argued briefly. He had pulled a little behind when the two of them had started talking, not wanting to intrude on the conversation. They were obviously close and the few days he'd spent getting to know them better had proven that. Still, there seemed to be something Janie was constantly trying to get out of Tracey that he wasn't ready to share with her yet. Though he'd tried to act oblivious, Mikey had picked up that much from overhearing them talk.

"They remind me of my brothers and I," Mikey said with a small smile to Eevee.

"Eeee," Eevee agreed.

"Uh oh," Mikey murmured when Tracey stormed forward and away from Janie. He exchanged worried glances with Eevee, tightened his grip on his backpack, and then started walking faster to catch up with Janie.

She looked visibly upset, staring down petulantly as she walked. Pichu was cooing softly and rubbing its cheek against hers from its perch on her shoulder.

"Janie…are you two okay?" Mikey asked lamely. He didn't know what else to say.

She offered him a weak smile. "I don't know. Don't think badly of this, Mikey. We're not always like this." She looked up pensively at Tracey, who was a short distance ahead of them. "And he's not always like this. Well, he wasn't when I knew him. But I guess four years really changes things, huh?"

"I guess," Mikey agreed softly. Privately, he was glad that Pyro, Rainer, and Sparky had never been away from him for that long. He wouldn't know what to do without his big brothers.

A/N: Tell me your thoughts, people. Read and Review. 


	8. Of Dreams and History

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The Tracey Chronicles

A/N: Thanks to Azure Pathos-Sketchit and Matsuda-Chan for the excellent reviews.

Chapter Eight: Of Dreams and History

Their trip through Viridian Forest was delayed by a slight detour they had been forced to take due to a small forest fire. The three of them had come upon a barricade as they made it further along down the path. Officer Jenny stood in front of it, looking around anxiously.

"Hold it, kids! You can't come this way. You'll have to take another route through the forest to get to Viridian City," Jenny said to them, waving her hand to indicate the start of an alternative path on their right.

"But why? What's wrong with this one?" Mikey asked.

Tracey caught a whiff of something odd in the air. "Hey…is that smoke?"

Jenny nodded grimly. "There's a fire up ahead so this path is blocked. The Squirtle Squad will have it under control in no time but until then, you kids need to get out of this area."

"The Squirtle Squad?" All three of them chorused.

Jenny nodded absently, eyes darting back towards the forest behind her. "They're a group of brave Squirtle that fight fires around these parts. Now move along, please. I have to secure the area."

"Okay, good luck, Officer Jenny," Janie added before they started down the alternate path.

This path was far from smooth and Tracey could instantly tell that it was rarely used. And for good reason, he mused. It took a few extra days to get to Viridian City since it wound around the lake then snaked through the thicker parts of the forest. Even now, the three of them were having more trouble dodging the large wild roots of the trees and gravelly ground.

"Will this take us much longer to get through?" Mikey asked miserably as he climbed over a large fallen log and nearly tumbled when his foot got caught in a hole in it.

"About two or three days," Tracey replied, grasping his small hand to steady him as he wiggled his foot free, "but at least we'll be out of harm's way and not towards the fire."

"I guess you're right," the boy said and hopped off of the log. "Thanks, Tracey!"

They hiked through the rough path for another few hours. Tracey had traveled it a few times on a few errands for Professor Oak. Even so, it was still a challenge for him. On the plus side, Tracey saw many Pokemon in these forest depths that were rarely seen in the regular path. He almost whipped out his sketchpad when an Aipom and its babies came swinging by over them but stopped himself when he realized he didn't have one with him.

"Can we take a break? Eevee and I are starving," asked Mikey after they spent another hard hour climbing a hill that the path ran up to.

"Vee," Eevee agreed, its ears drooping as it looked pleadingly at Tracey.

Tracey offered them an encouraging smile. "Sure. But just a little bit farther, okay? I think we're coming upon a clearing somewhere ahead. I remember discovering it with Professor Oak when we were tracking a group of Weedle."

Mikey sighed but agreed, however reluctantly. Tracey glanced over at his sister. She was walking a short distance away, Pichu now flopped lazily on her head and lightly dozing in the warm summer weather. She had been quiet since he'd blown up at her, making him feel a little guilty. In the time they'd been walking, he'd been thinking about everything and had concluded that his outburst had been wrong of him. Janie had been trying to help; she hadn't deserved that from him.

__

I'll have to talk to her later. Tell her I'm sorry. Tracey decided firmly. After all, she was the only one in his family beside his mother that cared about him. He couldn't push her away as well.

That was one of his flaws, Tracey realized heavily. He'd always been so eager to prove to others that he could handle everything himself and got angry when others tried to help. Perhaps he was determined to disprove the belief that he was a weakling as his father and schoolmates had constantly taken upon themselves to remind him.

"Here we are," Tracey announced when they found the clearing. People had obviously used this area as a campsite before them as there were remains of a campfire sitting in the middle of the clearing.

"Great!" Mikey said happily as he slung his backpack off of his shoulders. Eevee hopped down and stretched.

Tracey did the same as Mikey and stretched his arms to loosen the sore muscles. He placed his hands on his hips and glanced around the campsite, noticing that it was starting to get dark as evening descended. "Hey Janie, why don't we go see if we can find some firewood? It's getting dark. Mikey can watch out stuff."

"Sure," replied the younger Sketchit while she laid out her sleeping back and tucked the snoozing Pichu in it securely. Then, she rose and followed him wordlessly into the forest.

They walked in a strained silence for a moment, gathering branches and twigs that could be used to keep a fire going. Finally Tracey couldn't handle the awkwardness and sidled up to her. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I know you were only trying to help."

Janie looked at him for a moment before replying. "I…I guess it was wrong of me to go behind your back and call Professor Oak like that. Whatever happened, it probably wasn't any of my business. But you have to admit, you're not acting like yourself and that worries me."

"Not acting like myself? What do you mean?"

"The Tracey I know didn't keep secrets from me and didn't push me away like you've been doing," Janie answered picking up another suitable twig.

Tracey shrugged half-heartedly and looked away. "It's been a long time. Maybe that Tracey changed."

This didn't sit well with her. "I'm starting to feel like I don't even know you anymore."

_Maybe you don't. I don't even know me anymore._ That's what he wanted to say but instead, he just shrugged. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Yeah…me too," Janie said quietly with a thoughtful look. But the air between them had cleared and started becoming comfortable again. Still, Tracey felt that this wasn't over yet. So they began making their way back towards the campsite.

Mikey was digging through his backpack. Several small cans were surrounding him, one of which was open that Eevee's face was buried in, eating ravenously.

"Um…what's all of this, Mikey?" Janie asked with a puzzled look.

"Huh? Oh, this is dinner. I figured you guys would want some too. Don't worry, there's plenty. They were kind of heavy anyway and I don't like cooking so this is the fastest way," Mikey answered. He gestured for them to help themselves as he took a can opener and attacked a can of beans with it.

Tracey started a fire with the sticks they'd gathered. Soon, the three of them were sitting around a cheerful blaze, eating from the cans Mikey had offered. Janie was coaxing a grumpy Pichu-who'd just woken up-into eating some applesauce. Mikey was proudly telling Tracey all about his brothers and how each of them had their own evolution of Eevee. It was a peaceful night and Tracey felt contented to be among the two of them, even if he missed the Lab back in Pallet Town.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

__

The school was a looming, suffocating place. But it wasn't because of the building's size. The place was enormous and had a very relaxing atmosphere. Well, it was relaxing to the other students anyway. Tracey had always dreaded coming to school but unfortunately the Tangelo Island law stated that any child who wasn't a Pokemon Trainer had to attend school. 

_"Eww, look. There's that freak again."_

"Why does he always sit in the corner like that? Is he anti-social or something?"

"I heard his father doesn't even like him. What a loser!"

"Oh I hope they don't make me sit behind him again this year, he smells funny."

"I know! And those clothes? Oh god, but I guess that's what happens when you're fat like that. I guess his family doesn't believe in dieting."

"He's always drawing. I'm scared to even see what's in that freak's sketch book."

"It makes sense he'd have a girl's name. What a sissy boy."

Tracey lowered his head and bit his lip, trying to block out the words. He wished that they'd at least have the courtesy of waiting until he was out of earshot before the not-so-whispered insults began. He hated it. It was better when they acted as if he were invisible.

At home, it wasn't much better. Well, it wasn't when Arthur Sketchit, renowned captain of the great ocean liner The Lucille_, was home. No father and son could be more like night and day. At least night and day didn't clash like they did._

However, on the other hand, Tracey enjoyed being home with his mother, who was The Lucille_'s namesake, and his sister. Lucille and Janie made his life bearable, which he desperately needed whenever Arthur was back from one of his trips around the world. Like he was, unfortunately, that week._

"Hey boy!" Arthur greeted roughly as Tracey opened the door and stepped inside, clutching his sketchbook tightly, eyes on the ground.

"Hi honey. How was school?" Lucille kindly inquired with a quick kiss on his forehead. She paused when she noticed his expression. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

Tracey shrugged half-heartedly. "T-They made fun of me again."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Did they take your sketchbook again?" His mother said, concerned.

"No, it's right here. They just called me a sissy boy. Mommy, what's a sissy boy?"

But before Lucille could answer, Arthur's mocking voice did. "'Mommy, what's a sissy boy?' Geez, would you hear that? I'd say they're right."

Lucille glanced at her husband sharply. "Really, Arthur!"

"Lucy, look at him! He's almost in tears! No son of ours should be this damn sensitive! He's ready to cry when a few of his classmates joke around with him."

"They aren't simply joking with him! They hurt him. And it's not his fault he's sensitive!" Lucille argued.

"He is ten years old. No ten-year-old cries as much as he does. It's embarrassing."

"Arthur, that's enough! You're the embarrassing one. I can't believe you're saying all of this about your own son! We talked about this!"

"Lucy, you know it's the truth!"

It went on like this for a few more minutes, like it always did. Tracey just stared at the ground, feeling guilty that he'd made his parents argue again. He started inching towards the stairs to escape to his room. He went unnoticed by Arthur and Lucille, still exchanging harsh words until the door flew open again and a happier voice chimed up.

"I'm HO-OMMME!" Janie cheerfully announced, bouncing in with a large smile and a Poliwag-shaped lunch box. The tension between Arthur and Lucille momentarily dissipated. But Tracey knew it was only temporary. It was a vicious circle.

"There's my little princess! Come here!" Arthur scooped the six-year-old up in a bear hug, making her giggle.

"Daddy! Stop it! That tickles!"

Tracey watched his father play with his sister, a pang of jealousy shooting through him. Janie always got all the attention. Sometimes, he wished she wasn't there so Arthur would play with him instead. But immediately, he felt guilty at the thought. Janie was only six and besides, it wasn't her fault. He was being silly…not to mention a bad big brother.

So, grateful for the distraction, Tracey slipped away quietly to his room. He sighed and closed the door, tossing his books down. He took his sketchbook and a pencil out. Then, he made his way to the balcony of his parents' room where there was a staircase that led out towards the ocean. The ocean was the only place he found any solace, where there were no hurtful words or disappointing looks. It was his own private paradise where nothing could touch him. He liked to pretend that anyway.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tracey awoke to someone insistently shaking him by the shoulder. Janie was hovering over him, her expression tense. "Tracey, wake up!"

"Huh? What's going on? What's wrong?" He asked groggily, rubbing his eyes and sitting up.

"I don't know. Pichu and Eevee woke Mikey and me up. Something's wrong," She explained, gesturing to the Pokemon. Tracey saw that the two Pokemon were both in fighting stances. They were glancing around to the forest around them anxiously, ready to battle whatever it was they sensed nearby. Mikey was standing nearby, glancing around nervously.

"They must sense something," Tracey remarked getting to his feet. He looked to their surroundings. "But what?"

Then, out of the darkness, came a loud command. "HYPER BEAM!"

Tracey's eyes widened in surprise when he saw a bright beam of hot yellow energy explode through the forest…right at him!

A/N: Wow, that was long. Tracey fans, I recommend you read Azure Pathos-Sketchit's stories. They are wonderful. Well, read and review! ^_^


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